Health News

Features

Polk County Initiative Seeking to Instill Healthy Habits in Schools

by CHERYL ROGERS The Building a Healthier Polk School Health Team is teaching kindergarten through 12th grade students how to live healthier by making wise food choices and staying active. In an age of video games and fast foods, it’s easy to slip into bad health habits at an early age. But during…
Facts and Statistics About Arthritis

by ERIKA ALDRICH Florida may not be locked into a deep freeze during the winter months like the majority of the other U.S. states, but The Sunshine State can still experience cold temperatures during the winter months. Those periodic days of cold and freezing weather can spell pain and agony for those suffering from arthritis.…
Tips for Maintaining a Healthy, Youthful Look

by MARY TOOTHMAN Things have changed a lot since the days when the primary beauty treatments were hair styles, nails, and facials — although those are still part of mainstream beauty care. These days, there are many ways to work on beauty as age progresses, and they appear to be quite popular. Mark and Jeanna…

“There’s a fly in my soup!”

“There’s a fly in my soup!” No… wait, that’s not a fly. It’s a floater. What are floaters? And why do we get them? Floaters are a symptom of the natural aging of the vitreous gel in the eye. Our eyeballs are filled with gel, and as we grow older, the gel becomes more liquid.…
The Connection Between Lifestyle, Vascular Disease

I cannot really believe that the holidays are upon us already. This year has been a unique one with another surge of Covid, and its usual mix of pain and pleasure. I would like to take this opportunity to emphasize the role of lifestyle in the management of vascular disease, which can lend a sense…
Diabetes — the Leading Cause of Blindness

October may be National Diabetes Month, but for me as an eye doctor, every month is diabetes month. Complications from diabetes are the leading cause of blindness in adults in the United States. For my patients who are diabetic, I am always on the lookout for bleeding inside the eye as well as internal swelling,…